A few years ago I was in Tierra Del Fuego and was taken on a tour of the Ushuaia conservation park. The tour guide informed us that when the first settlers arrived and began settling the land, they brought beavers with them to help clear the dense forestation. Due to the warm temperatures, over the years, the beavers’ coats have thinned and are now minimal to non-existant.
Of course, we never saw any of these fur-less beavers so maybe it was all a joke?
That sure sounds pretty suspicious to me.
Well, first how long ago was it that the settlers arrived? If its long enough it could happen. I doubt the non-existant but they could become so thin that they appear to be so.
But that took a lot of forsight for the settlers. When they were packing did they run down a list of conditions and how to overcome them? I can see it now:
Packer1: Ok in case of swampland what are we packing?
Packer2: Sponges to soak it up!
Packer1: Ok what about mountains?
Packer2: Well I have some dynamite here…
Packer1: That’ll work. What about forests?
Packer2: I’ll go get that beaver that I saw around my folks’ home.
Packer1: Ok we’re all set with the beaver. Lets go.
http://216.239.33.100/search?q=cache:oSgawYmIsSIC:www.cnn.com/NATURE/9907/09/argentina.beaver/+tierra+del+fuego+beavers&hl=en&ie=UTF-8
If you read the link, there IS a beaver problem. But not what you think. Who’d of thunk it?
The beavers ate through that last link.
Here’s http://www.cnn.com/NATURE/9907/09/argentina.beaver/ the correct one.
I can’t imagine a hairless beaver.
Okay, so maybe the original supply wasn’t settlers - seems it was the government. The question is, is there any chance they’ve developed this fur-less condition?
I can. Don’t see what that’s got to do with forests, though…
…oh.
Tierra del Fuego is at latitude 54° S and the temperature drops in the winter to -59 F. Why would any animal that was accustomed to using thick fur to stay warm be inclined to lose its fur in such a climate?
All Google searches for “hairless beaver” seem to come up with Japanese sites, not Argentine.
But, I will keep on with the research.
I think you need a better imagination. 
The again, what do I know? I thought this thread was going to be about the song Popsicle Toes.
Tierra del Fuego IIRC has extremes in climate – a hot summer but a very cold winter. I think your leg was being pulled significantly. (And I hope none of you were googling “hairless beaver” from work! :))
I’ll point out that I camped down Tierra del Fuego way during their late spring (late November/ early December). We had snow and rain and it was damn cold in the mornings.
I only opened this thread to find the answer to a question. I found it. The answer is…8.
Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm…
Oh, I know for a fact hairless beavers do indeed exist.
Apparently not in TDF though.